Frustration in New York at official response to Sandy

By
Euronews

Amid the destruction and rising death toll in the aftermath of Storm Sandy in the eastern United States, there are complaints that the relief effort is failing to reach some areas.

In a poor district of New York residents queue for food donations. Many in Manhattan’s “Alphabet City” are already without water and power.

Stores are closed. Local churches and charities are stepping in, as the city’s authorities struggle to cope.

“There is a lot of frustration, there is a sense where they have no value. They see that other areas are being taken care of and they totally overlooked us,” said Pastor Richard Del Rio who heads the neighbourhood church.

“Now a couple days later we are finally getting some resources and most of the resources that have come in so far have not come from the city, they have come from different organisations, charitable organisations, churches,” he went on.

In New Jersey there have been more queues as motorists went in search of petrol. Fuel is in short supply and power cuts mean few service stations are operating.

Half of New York’s confirmed dead have been found across the bay from Manhattan in Staten Island, overrun by a wall of water on Monday.

In this part of the city too, there is a feeling that help is slow in coming.

“I want to go home, but there’s no home, I can’t go home, and that’s killing me. That’s breaking my heart. I want to go home to my house,” said one woman.

Some people in the district had ignored evacuation orders.

There is anger that Sunday’s New York marathon is going ahead despite the damage.